Behind the Eyes, Upon the Lies
by Misty Reeyus
Summary: When Conan meets Arai Terumi, a high school girl with a hidden secret, he finds his own secret harder than ever to keep. X-over with Aoyama's oneshot, Tell Me A Lie.
1. The Transfer Student

**Behind the Eyes, Upon the Lies**

_**Warnings:** Will be updated very slowly/never. _

_**Pairings: **Slight Shinichi x Ran._

_**Notes:** Crossover story between Detective Conan and another piece of Gosho's work, Tell Me A Lie, written because I was disappointed that the latter was so short. I really wanted to see more of Terumi and her special ability, but since there wasn't any more of her story to read, I decided to write my own. This story is set after the Clash of Red and Black arc, but before the London arc._

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Detective Conan.**_

* * *

**The Transfer Student**

The teenaged girl stood in the middle of the schoolyard, staring at the building that was her destination. Hundreds of other teens bustled around her, with bags on their backs and books in their arms, all wearing the same blue uniform. But she didn't pay attention to them; her mind had pushed their existence into the background, for she was too focused on the large characters on the side of the building that spelled out_ Teitan High School_.

The sound of the ringing bell in the background managed to breach her senses, reminding herself of where she was and that she had only a few minutes until class began.

_"Well, this is it," _she thought, pulling herself out of her trance. She let her gaze stray from the characters, moving downwards, until it settled on the entrance. She used her finger to push her large lensed glasses up onto the bridge of her nose, then headed towards the large double doors.

Meanwhile, inside a classroom marked 2-B, students were mingling around and chatting with friends, their last chance to do so before the ring of the bell plummeted them into a full hour lesson. And among the students, all the discussions that buzzed around seemed to be on one main topic: the transfer student.

They had known since yesterday that they would be getting a new student, their first one since Hondou Eisuke, but no information beyond that was given on the subject. This left many students wondering what the student was like. Boy or girl? Nice or mean? Cool or nerdy? Nobody knew the answers, leaving the possibilities up to their imaginations. But the student was due to come today, so they would know soon enough.

Suddenly, the door opened, and the teacher walked into the room. The students all immediately came to attention and went straight for their assigned seats. When everyone was seated, the teacher began to speak.

"Good morning class," he said. "As you are already aware, we are having a new student today. So now, I would like to introduce your new classmate, Arai Terumi."

The students directed their gazes towards the door as a foot stepped into the room.

Terumi had never really been comfortable going to a new school, a fact that she was now reminded of as she stood at the door marked 2-B. New building layout, new teachers, new classes; just the thought of it made her feel sick, and it just got worse every time it happened. She could still remember the nervousness she'd felt on her first day of elementary school, the anxiety of entering middle school, and the agony of starting high school. But at least then she'd had her friends there with her, helping her along the way. Now, she was in a completely different place, surrounded by people she'd never met before. It felt more like torture with every second that ticked by.

It couldn't be helped, though. Her father had gotten a job relocation, so her family had to move out and rent an apartment nearby. The relocation was only temporary; Terumi had been assured of that

multiple times by her parents, but at the very least she would be finishing the trimester here.

"So now, I would like to introduce your new classmate, Arai Terumi," she heard the teacher say from inside. Terumi took that as her cue. Preparing herself, she stepped into the room, fully aware of the stares directed at her. She stopped near the teacher and turned to meet the gazes of her new classmates.

The thoughts of over thirty students filled her head all at once. The thoughts were quite jumbled in her mind, but she'd had enough experience in crowds that she'd learned how to pick out the individual thoughts. Terumi heard multiple _"So it's a girl" _comments, a few disappointed _"Darn, I was hoping it'd be a hot guy" _thoughts from a few girls, and one perverted sounding _"Hey, she's kinda cute!" _(she almost blushed at that) from the boy in the back row.

Realizing that now was the time that she was supposed to introduce herself, she pushed the many invading thoughts to the back of her mind. "Um, my name is Arai Terumi," she said. "Please take care of me."

The teacher nodded. "Well then Terumi, let's find you a seat so we can begin our lesson." He took a quick scour of the room. "How about we put you in that seat there," the teacher said, pointing to an empty seat in about the center of the room.

As the teacher said that, Terumi noted that one student seemed to visibly tense up. The student was a girl with long black hair, part of which seemed to form a horn-like shape on the top of her head. Terumi looked at the girl and a foreign thought instantly entered her mind.

_"That desk? But that's Shinichi's," _the girl was thinking. To Terumi it sounded mournful, almost longing. _"No, it's time to let it go," _the girl thought, now seeming to fight against herself, although Terumi could still sense the sadness behind it._ "He's been gone so long; this was bound to happen eventually."_

For a moment, Terumi wondered who this Shinichi could be and why he made that seat so important, but she knew she wouldn't be able to acquire those answers at this time. She didn't understand why, but she could tell that this girl was obviously upset about somebody else sitting in that seat.

"Actually Sensei, could I sit in the front?" Terumi blurted, the words coming out before she could stop them. She just could never resist the chance to help someone out. Unable to take it back now, she gestured to a seat in the front row, the only empty seat in the room other than the one apparently belonging to Shinichi.

"Why?" the teacher asked.

"Um, well, I'm nearsighted, so I can't see the board very well in the back," Terumi ad-libbed quickly.

The teacher looked confused. "But you have glasses."

"Yeah, um, they're due for a lens change soon."

It wasn't the best excuse she could have come up with, but it seemed to be enough, because the teacher didn't pursue the matter further. "Very well, if you insist."

"Thank you," Terumi said, taking her chosen seat.

From behind her, Terumi could have sworn that she heard a sigh of relief.

* * *

_**More Notes:**_

_-Originally planned as a one-shot. I eventually decided to make it multi-chapter fic. However, I am prone to writer's block and very late or irregular updates. Do not expect much._


	2. Meeting the Mouris

**Behind the Eyes, Upon the Lies**

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Detective Conan or Tell Me A Lie.**_

* * *

**Meeting the Mouris**

Classes went by rather quickly for Terumi, and when the final bell rung, she had to admit that her first day at Teitan High hadn't been all that bad. The lessons were relatively easy to understand, none of the teachers were overly strict or mean, and the other students were mostly nice to her. So as she walked out the school's front gates with her books in her arms, Terumi felt better than she had expected she would.

That is, until she collided right into something.

The force of the impact sent Terumi stumbling backwards a bit, causing her arms to loosen and for her things to fall to the ground. When she regained her footing, she took a look at the person that she had bumped into. The person was familiar; Terumi remembered her as being the girl who didn't want anyone else to sit in that certain seat.

"Oh, sorry!" the girl said, instantly crouching down and starting to pick up the fallen items. "I wasn't watching where I was going."

"No, it's okay. I should have been paying more attention too," Terumi responded, starting to gather items herself. It wasn't long before everything was picked up.

"Again, sorry about that," the girl said after they finished. "You're Arai Terumi-san, right?"

"Yeah," Terumi said, putting her things in the bag slung over her shoulder.

"My name is Mouri Ran. We're in the same class."

"Yeah, I remember you from earlier," Terumi said.

"So, what did you think of your first day?" the girl, now to be known as Ran, asked.

Terumi shrugged. "Okay I guess."

"Ran!" a voice suddenly cried from behind them, causing both girls to turn around towards the source: a girl with short, light brown hair that was running towards them. Terumi searched her mind and vaguely recalled her as being one of the girls who'd wanted the new student to be a "hot guy".

"Hi Sonoko," Ran said.

"Hey," the girl called Sonoko said as she stopped by Ran's side. She looked towards Terumi. "You're the new kid, right? Akai or something?"

"Arai," Terumi corrected. "Arai Terumi."

"I'm Suzuki Sonoko," Sonoko said.

"Her father is head of the Suzuki Corporation," Ran added.

"Oh yeah, I've heard of that," Terumi said. _"Although most of the stuff I know about it is failed attempts to capture Kaitou Kid," _she added as an afterthought.

"So where are you headed?" Ran asked.

"To my apartment," Terumi said. She pointed down the road. "It's down that direction."

"Then let's walk together," Sonoko said. "We're going that way too."

"Sure," Terumi said, all three girls starting down the sidewalk.

As they walked, the girls made light conversation. Ran and Sonoko asked a lot about Terumi. What did she think of Beika? What was her old school like? Did she have a boyfriend? (Sonoko's question, of course).

"Speaking of boyfriends," Sonoko said, "earlier you almost stole Ran's boyfriend's seat."

Ran's cheeks went pink. "Sonoko!" she whined.

"Boyfriend?" Terumi asked.

"No, no," Ran denied, waving a hand in front of her face. "It's not like that. He's just a friend."

"_Although boyfriend does sound kinda nice," _the unspoken thought entered Terumi's mind.

"What's his name?" Terumi asked, although she was pretty sure she already knew.

"He's Kudo Shinichi, a high school detective," Sonoko said.

"Kudo Shinichi?" Terumi said, something sparking in the back of her mind. "That name sounds familiar."

"He used to be a really famous detective, but then he disappeared to go on some big case. It's been forever since then," Sonoko continued. "Ran's still waiting for him."

"I am not!" Ran cried, crossing her arms over her chest and putting a defiant look on her face. "Why would I care about that stupid deduction geek?" Then in her mind, _"It'd be nice if he called more often though."_

Sonoko giggled. "Sure, Ran. Sure."

"It's true!" _"Sorta..."_

Sonoko continued to pester Ran over Shinichi, who kept denying it with lies that Terumi saw through easily, much to her own amusement. No matter how much she denied it, it was obvious that Ran had a thing for this Shinichi person. But Terumi was pulled out of her thoughts at the sight of a familiar tall building up ahead.

"Ah, that's it!" Terumi cried, causing Ran and Sonoko to stop in their tracks.

"What's it?" Sonoko asked.

"The apartment I'm living in is over there," Terumi said, pointing to the building.

"Wow, you live pretty close to me," Ran noted.

Terumi barely heard her though, as her mind was occupied on her current task. Out of her shoulder bag, she pulled out a black binder and opened it, revealing a plastic pocket attached to the inside of the cover. She reached her fingers into the pocket and felt around, but didn't come across anything.

_"Huh?" _Terumi thought. She felt around again, but she still came up with nothing. Then she pulled at the top of the pocket and looked inside. It was empty. Now slightly worried, Terumi started searching through her shoulder bag.

"Something wrong, Terumi-san?" Ran asked, noticing her alarm.

"I can't seem to find the key to my apartment," Terumi said.

"Eh?" Sonoko said.

"I can't get in without that key. I put it in my binder's pocket this morning, but now it's not here. And I know I had it when I left school; I checked." She searched through her bag a little more before continuing, "It doesn't seem to be in my bag either."

"That means it must have fallen out somewhere," Ran said.

Terumi's mind sparked as she remembered something. "It must have fallen out when I dropped my things earlier."

A guilty look suddenly crossed Ran's face, although it went unnoticed by Sonoko who said, "Can't you just call your parents and ask them to let you in?"

Terumi shook her head. "My dad's work shift isn't due to end for at least another three hours, and my mom said she'd be going shopping for things to help us settle in, so she can't come back until even later tonight. And besides, neither of them have cell phones."

"Well, can you ask the landlord to open it for you?" Sonoko asked.

Terumi shook her head again. "The landlord's very strict. He made it very clear when we rented the room that nobody could get in without a key. That's why I put the key in my binder; so I would have it with me at all times."

"Ah! I know!" Ran suddenly said, turning to Terumi. "You can stay over at my place. At least until your parents come home."

"Oh no, it's fine," Terumi said. "I can just wait for them to come back—"

"Nonsense," Ran insisted. "You can't just stay out here all day, and also it's my fault that you lost the key."

Terumi considered it. "Well, are you sure you don't mind?"

"It's totally fine, really," Ran said.

The offer was completely genuine, and Terumi supposed it would be less boring to pay a visit to someone's house than to stand by the door all day. "Alright," she finally agreed. "Show me the way."

* * *

Ran had spoken correctly when she said that Terumi's apartment was close to her place. Within a few short minutes, the three girls found themselves standing in front of the Mouri Detective Agency.

"Detective Agency?" Terumi asked as she saw the sign on the window.

"Oh, I didn't tell you, did I?" Ran said. "My father is a famous detective. You might have heard of him, Mouri Kogoro."

"Eh?" Terumi said. She had in fact heard of the famous Mouri Kogoro, aka "Sleeping Kogoro", but she hadn't thought that there would be any relation. "You're his daughter?"

"Yeah," Sonoko said, butting in, "and she always gets surrounded by cases. It's like they follow her dad around wherever he goes."

"Is it my fault?" Ran said. "It's not like I want so many things to happen around me."

_"The daughter of a famous detective and the daughter of the head of a major corporation," _Terumi thought. _"I'm meeting some awfully important people here." _

"Well, anyways let's get inside," Ran said gesturing for Terumi to follow. "Sonoko, you coming?"

"Nah," Sonoko said. "I've got things to do at home today. But you two have fun." She raised her hand in a good-bye gesture, then started off down the street again.

"Well, let's go," Ran said. She grabbed Terumi by the wrist and led her through the door and up a set of stairs, stopping in front of a door.

Ran opened the door a bit, but not enough for Terumi to see inside. "Dad, are you here?" she asked.

"Ran?" a gruff, slurred, and somewhat sleepy sounding voice came from inside.

"Dad, we've got a guest. Make yourself presentable."

"Is it a client?"

"No, it's the new transfer student at school. She's gonna stay here for a while, okay?"

"Sure, sure, go ahead and—wait, _she_?" At that, Terumi heard a series of rather loud rustles, clanks, and what sounded suspiciously like a razor, before a mustached man in a business suit appeared at the door.

"Well, hello there," he said, looking directly at her. "Allow me to introduce myself. I am the great detective, Mouri Kogoro."

"U-um, it's an honor to meet you, Mouri-san," Terumi said, somewhat nervously.

"It's also nice for me, to meet a wonderful young lady like you," Mouri said, and Terumi didn't have to read his mind to know that he were trying just a little too hard to be impressive.

"Uh, thanks," Terumi said, trying to keep her reactions from seeming awkward.

"Dad!" Ran said, obviously rather embarrassed by her father's antics. "Can you please move out of the doorway? We'd like to get inside."

"Oh, of course," Mouri said, quickly stepping aside, almost bowing as the two girls walked in before closing the door behind him.

"Alright," Ran said, turning to Terumi. "Well go ahead and make yourself comfortable."

"Thanks," Terumi said, taking a seat on one of the two couches.

Suddenly, the door opened again, and a little boy wearing glasses walked in and said, "I'm home!"

"Oh, you have a brother?" Terumi asked.

"No, Conan-kun's not my brother," Ran said. "He's just living with us while his parents are overseas."

"Ran-neechan, who's this?" Conan asked, eying Terumi.

"Conan-kun, this is Arai Terumi-san," Ran said. "She's the new transfer student at school."

"Oh," Conan said. At this, Conan looked up at Terumi, a huge smile having formed on his face. "Nice to meet you Terumi-neechan!" In a much more irritated tone, the thought, _"Let's hope she's not __as much trouble as Hondou," _entered her mind.

Terumi was surprised at the rude sounding thought coming from the little boy, but she was used to things like this enough to know how to suppress any unusual reactions, and she sent a somewhat forced smile back. "Nice to meet you too, Conan-kun."

"Conan-kun, how was school today?" Ran asked.

"It was great!" Conan said with a bright smile. Terumi also heard him think, _"We recited the __five times table over and over again. What do you think?" _in a rather sarcastic and annoyed manner.

"Well, we better start on our homework now," Ran said. "We've got that big math assignment to do."

The two high school girls sat on one couch, and together they started working on their homework. Conan sat at the opposite couch, presumably doing his own work, and Ran's dad sat at his desk, listening to the radio through his earphones and reading a newspaper. It took about an hour before the work was finally done.

"Finished," Ran said, standing up and stretching her arms. As she put her arms down she said, "Well, it's probably about time I started cooking dinner. What do you guys want?"

Terumi shrugged. "Whatever the rest of you are having, I guess. I don't really mind."

Ran nodded. "Okay. Conan-kun, do you want anything?"

"Just curry is fine," Conan said.

"Dad?"

"It doesn't really matter to me."

"Okay," Ran said, going out the door and heading up the stairs to the kitchen.

Once Ran was gone, Terumi looked through the corner of her eye at the little boy on the other couch, who was now reading a book. She could see that he didn't seem to like her much, but she was pretty sure he didn't hate her either, and though he was a bit peculiar, he didn't seem like a bad kid. They might as well try to get to know each other better.

"So, Conan-kun," she started, getting his attention. "What are you reading?"

He gave her an indifferent look at first, but quickly he seemed to compose himself, putting on a bright smile before responding, "It's _Momotaro_. We need to read it for class." _"Though it's pretty boring since this is the simplified version. At least the original is actually a bit interesting."_

"Ah," Terumi said. Quickly deciding that discussing the literary elements of a children's book wasn't going to get on Conan's good side, she tried to subtly change the topic. "I'm not one for the old tales, myself. I personally favor science fiction." It was true, partly because of the fact that she considered herself as something that could have come out of a sci-fi novel. "What's your favorite type of story?"

"Oh, definitely mystery," Conan said, and though it was masked, there was real enthusiasm in his voice. Now she was getting somewhere.

"Is that so? Then, what's your favorite book?" Terumi asked.

"_The Sign of Four_," escaped Conan's lips, but immediately after he said it, his eyes widened in alarm. "T-the simplified version, of course," he added quickly. "I tried to read the original, but it was too hard." _"Unlike me, a normal kid would find the original too complicated to understand."_

Terumi wondered why Conan felt that he needed to lie. She'd already noted that the boy found elementary school work to be boring, so this new information didn't surprise her too much. It was obvious from the start that Conan was much more intelligent than the average gradeschooler. But why did he feel like he needed to hide that fact? Terumi didn't tend to pry intentionally, but something about this boy just made her feel like she needed to know more.

But before their discussion could go any further, the door opened and Ran stepped in, looking rather sheepish.

"Um, there's a little problem," Ran said nervously. "We don't have enough ingredients to make dinner."

"Eh?" Conan turned away from Terumi and gave a questioning sound. "We don't?"

"Yes, unfortunately," Ran said. "Though it's strange; I could have sworn we had plenty earlier today."

"You probably just remembered wrong," Ran's dad's voice came from behind them, causing Terumi to look back. Upon seeing him, her mind instantly picked up a nervous sounding, _"I hope she doesn't find out that I accidentally caused a lot of food in the fridge to spill onto the floor when I was getting a snack earlier" _before the man guiltily hid his face behind his newspaper. Terumi felt herself sweatdrop. For a famous detective, Mouri didn't really act all that intelligent when he was at home.

"But what are we gonna eat?" Conan whined.

"What are you talking about, you brat? We can just go down to Poirot's," Mouri said.

"But Dad, Poirot's is closed for tonight. Remember?" Ran said. "Azusa-san said that the proprietor was going to be on leave for the next few days."

"...Oh yeah," Mouri said sheepishly.

"So what are we gonna eat?" Conan whined yet again, looking up at the taller occupants of the room with wide eyes and a pout on his lips. Despite how adorable he looked, his appearance didn't distract Terumi from the incoming thought, _"Whatever it is, it better not be a stupid kid's meal again."_

They ended up just deciding on a simple restaurant downtown, and although Ran apologized to her numerously for the trouble, Terumi didn't really mind. The walk there wasn't too long, and once they were there, they didn't have to wait long for their orders to be served.

As Terumi dug into her beef teriyaki, she chatted with Ran and subtly observed Conan. She wanted to see if he would think anything that might help her understand him better, but so far the only thoughts she'd been able to pick up were about the curry rice he was eating.

And before she could pick up any more thoughts, a scream sounded throughout the restaurant.

* * *

_**More Notes:**_

_-Conan is probably OOC._

_-May or may not be continued at this point._


End file.
